Edoni

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Coin of an Edonian King, Getas, 470-465 BC.
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Coin of an Edonian King, Getas, 470-465 BC.

The Edoni (also Edones, Edonians, Edonides) were a Thracian people who dwelt mostly between the Nestus and the Strymon rivers in southern Thrace, but also once dwelt west of the Strymon at least as far as the Axios. They inhabited the region of Mygdonia before the Macedonians drove them out (Thuc., Pelop. 2.99). There were a number of Edonian towns, including Drabescus and Myrcinus.

Lycurgus was a mythical king of the Edoni, who was destroyed by Bacchus for opposing the worship of the new god. The Edoni were celebrated for their orgiastic worship of Bacchus (Dionysus). In the Latin poets, the term Edonis signified a female Bacchanal.

See also: Lycurgus (Thrace).

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